Darker Than Black
by FreedomWriter15
Summary: Everything has changed. The world is dark. The humans are slaves, and vampires rule over all. Marie is just trying to get through this world that she has been raised in. But that changes when she meets her new Master, Chancellor Axel. He is hiding something from her, something that she is determined to discover. But this is just the beginning to Marie's twisted tale.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey Bros! I created this chapter and a couple of others and I am still working on the rest. I really want this to be a trilogy but right now I just want to test this out and see what other people think. This is DEFINETLY a darker turn on my writing and I am so nervous about even posting this! If you like it please review if not, there are plenty of other stories to read and you can go on your merry way. If you write something negative, I hope you realize, I DON'T CARE. Heck, I even make fun of mean reviews. **

**Enjoy the first chapter!**

The pens floor was covered in straw, a little cot was in the back corner of the small area. Small noises were made throughout the arena from the other pens, small, dim lights were connected to the wall and a guard walked down the halls, checking each cell every now and then.

I couldn't sleep so I sat in-between the cot and the pen door.

The pens couldn't exactly be called cells because we weren't in a prison, we were about to be sold. Some of us at least, others were just going to be showed. I was originally supposed to be showed only, but my Mistress decided to sell me at the last second.

"Mommy?" A small voice called from the cot.

I whipped my head over to see a miniature version of me slightly sitting up on the bed. The only difference between us was our eyes. While mine were a light green, hers were a gorgeous blue.

I was a breeder before they decided that I would be better off as an entertainer.

Breeders were meant to only do that, breed. We would have kids at the age of twenty with other twenty year olds, if you're lucky, and then when they turned sixteen they would be chosen by our owners about what they would do.

After I have my first child, the vampire that had helped me deliver her had commented to my Mistress that I would be better off as an Entertainer than a Breeder. All Entertainers do is be shown off to others at either the fairs the vampires held or at gatherings if your owner wished such a thing. It was usually the Masters who would do that, the Mistresses would only ask for the Entertainers to pour drinks to the guests at parties, but even then it depended on who you had.

"Alice, what are you doing up?"

"I had a bad dream. Please come back to bed?" Her blue eyes started to sparkle in the frame of her light brown hair.

I stood and padded back to the cot. All we had to cover ourselves was a dark, thick wool blanket and a single pillow was at the head of the tiny mattress.

My Mistress didn't like what the conditions were like and filed a complaint. I feared for the poor soul who had to deal with her. She was the Fifth Charge of the United World Council and had a high title. She was a nice woman, but if you angered her, you didn't want to be within fifteen miles of her.

She especially went red when she found out what we were all to wear tomorrow for the bidding. For the women, a top that barely covered my breasts and a tiny cloth that covered my privates, but did not necessarily cover my bottom all the way. For little girls, they were the same but weren't as racy as the women's. For the men, they wore a cloth over their front and nothing in the back. And to make things worse, if a bidder wished, they could ask the auctioneer to lift the cloth or remove part of it for a few seconds for them to get a look and then the person being purchased could replace the cloth.

"What was the dream?"

"We got separated, like Molly and Miss Abigail did."

Molly was Abigail's daughter, both were in the same house as us and Mistress decided to sell Abigail when she discovered that Molly was not supposed to be born until later in winter when she was born early fall. She had had a child without permission. In some houses, that was punishable by death, but instead, she waited until Molly was old enough and then sold Abigail.

"We will never be separated, I will make sure of it." I promised.

"That's what Molly said Miss Abigail told her," she sniffled. "Who's going to take care of Molly now?"

I hesitated. I had been taking care of Molly for the past year and a half and now she was by herself at the house. "Miss Rosa will, you know she'll make sure Molly is well taken care of."

"Will she?"

"Of course she will." I kissed the top of her head. "Rest now, love."

She laid back down and fell asleep knowing I was next to her. I started to hum and pet her hair. Ever since she was born, she loved the feeling of someone petting her head, a way of knowing that someone was always there and loved her.

I soon fell into a dreamless sleep as well. Tomorrow would decide our fate.

The guard woke Alice and me early the next morning and gave us our outfits. I held the blanket in front of Alice while she changed. When it was my turn, I turned my back towards the pen door and stripped. I felt the guard's eyes on me as I put on my selling clothes. The gray dresses that Alice and I had originally worn were given to the guard and they would not be given back. Every house had a certain dress code for the humans. In our Mistresses, the humans wore gray dresses and suits.

Where we went next would decide what we would wear next.

"I hope we can wear purple next. I love that color. Or maybe blue."

I smiled softly, "Those would be lovely."

A few minutes after I said that, vampire buyers started to come down the passage ways and started to look at what the sellers had to offer.

A beautiful woman stopped in front of our pen and read the paper that was on a clip board. She twisted a perfect blond curl around her finger while she read and a smirk curled on her mouth. "Come forward, child."

Alice hesitated, but rose and went to the door. I stood, watching as she went to the front.

The woman smiled down at her and whispered, "Now, Alice is it? How old are you?"

"Six, Madam."

"What lovely manners. Is that your mother over there in the back, Alice?"

"Yes, Madam."

"Hmm." She held that smirk. "Marie. Come here please." I slowly made my way forward and held my face blank.

"You are nineteen, correct?"

"Yes. Madam."

"You had Alice at the age of thirteen then?"

"Yes, Madam."

"Why did your house host breed you so early in age?"

"They said it was because I had matured quickly for my age, Madam."

"Well, that isn't unusual, just unheard of. Would you like to keep your Alice?"

"Whatever you wish, Madam."

"Excellent."

She left and I visibly relaxed. Alice looked up at me. "Why didn't you tell her you wanted to stay with me?"

"Because telling them that is a sign of defiance or weakness to them. We have to be submissive or otherwise they will hurt us both."

"Okay, mommy."

"You always have to be strong, no matter what you feel, be strong, baby."

"I understand."

More vampires came and inspected us. None asked to check me for scarring. The only I had were stretchmark's, but they weren't too noticeable unless you looked for them.

It was an hour before the bidding and that's when we were judged and given a certain title. When the judges came to our pen, they had a guard open the door and stand at the door, watching for any mischief. He had a Taser and a gun on either side of his hip.

A male judge came up to Alice first. She was terrified by the look in her eyes but I nodded, secretly telling her everything was okay. He lifted one arm and then the other, inspecting for scar tissue or a disfigurement. He then went to her legs and inspected them. He tilted her head this way and that and check her eyes. He then opened her mouth and made a tsking sound. "The child is still missing teeth. You, Breeder, what is her age?"

"Six years, Sir."

"And yourself?"

"Nineteen, Sir."

"Very young age to have a child."

I said nothing, knowing he was testing me, seeing if I would speak without permission.

That didn't stop Alice.

"My mommy matured quickly, Sir."

He snapped his head toward her. "Did I ask you to speak?"

She shook and his voice. He rose above her and looked ready to strike.

"Punish me, Sir!"

He turned to me slowly. "What?"

"I should have taught her better manners, please punish me for not teaching her better."

He looked to the guard. He gave him the Taser and a whip, letting him decide which to use. He took the whip and grabbed my arm. He threw my into the pen door forcefully and my head hit the metal, causing it to go _ping_. He didn't warn me when he was going to strike, or how long it would go on for. He just started and kept going until he wished for it to end. I felt a warm liquid go down my back after a few minutes and he stopped a minute later. He swore loudly, knowing that the seller would want compensation for the damage he had done to the goods.

He turned to Alice and in a stern voice, he ordered, "Clean her quickly."

They left and I slumped down and hit the floor, exhausted. The guard gave Alice rags and left without a word. I heard her cry softly. "Mommy?"

"Shh, it's okay, love." I got up and nearly collapsed again. I had to use the wall and have Alice help balance me on my other side until we got to the cot. I laid on the itchy wool blanket and Alice climbed on the cot and started to clean my back. It stung and when she would touch it and I'd let a small moan escape when the pain got worse.

"I'm sorry, mommy. So sorry."

"Shh, hush now. It was my fault. I should have told you how to act when the judges were around."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

I lifted up a little despite the pain, and laid her down next to me. "It okay, my darling. You are not to blame. I love you and always will."

She cried softly into my chest and hugged me, resting her small hands on my shoulders. I fell asleep without even realizing it.

"Unbelievable! I should take them back and not deal with any of you! I will never come back here! You people do not know how to handle humans! If she had bled to death, I would have your heads!" _Mistress?_

"We are sorry, Chancellor Aria."

"You sure as hell better be!"

I felt a hand touch my shoulder and I opened my eyes slowly. I took in my surroundings. Alice was sitting next to me, near my stomach, the judge that whipped me stood next to the wall, arms crossed and a look of regret stuck to his face. Mistress stood infront of me, her hand was on my shoulder.

"Marie? How are you feeling?"

_Horribly._ "I am well, Mistress."

"Do not lie to me young one. How do you feel? Are you in pain?"

"Yes, Mistress."

The judge flinched visibly at my answer. He was going to have hell to pay with Mistress.

"I'll make sure you have the proper medication, Marie."

"Thank you, Mistress."

"Alice, please go with the guard to get your mother some medicine."

"Yes, Mistress." She jumped off the cot and went with the guard to get something to help the pain.

After they left, Mistress turned to the judge. "Apologize."

"I am sorry Chancellor Aria."

"Not to me, tell Marie how sorry you are."

"Excuse me?"

"You dare question me?!"

His eyes got large. He came forward and opened his mouth.

"On your knees. Look her in the eyes, and tell her you are so very sorry."

"Cha-," she cut him off with a look. He got on his knees and looked me straight in the eyes. He said in a soft voice, "I am very sorry for what I have done to you. Will you please forgive me?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Now, when Alice comes back, you are to clean her back."

"Yes, Chancellor." He now had a feel in my shoes now.

A half hour later, my bck was better and it was time for the bidding. Mistress sat out in the crowd to see who was going to buy us and make sure they behaved when we were in the arena. Alice stayed close to me when we were in line for who goes in. Thousands of humans were to be sold today, and millions of vampires had shown for the opportunity to buy.

Before the man in front of us went to the arena, he strated to panic and fight the guards that were leading him in. He started to yell and act crazy. I put Alice behind me incase he lashed out, but the guards were on him in a second. They held him by his arms, keeping him still. The auctioneer started to laugh and you could here him say from the back, _"We got a feisty one here, folks! He'll be a lot of fun for some of you fetish vamps!"_

I shivered at the laughs and held Alice a little closer to me.

After ten minutes of bidding, he finally sold for a thousand. On average, humans go for that much every auction.

"_Up next, we're selling a mother daughter duo, both are very healthy but the mother had a bit of an incident this morning so she now has some whip marks on her."_

That would cause the price to go down, but whatever we sold for, Mistress would have it doubled.

The guards took us into the arena, the lights were bright and I could hardly see the buyers. Since the arena was so big, the vampires had little pads that they would type their bidding numbers on and send requests of what they wanted to see.

Alice was frightened, but I had to get us moving or we'd get moved. We went around the ring and I showed my back to the crowd. They needed to see what they were buying.

"_Oh, we got a bid, for two thousand, but just for the mother."_

I froze. No. Please, God no.

"Mommy?"

"Shh, it'll be okay, they won't separate us." They can't.

"_We got another for ten grand for both!"_

"See, we'll be okay."

"_Twelve for just the mother! Come on folks, you know these two look cute together!"_

"MOMMY!" She started to panic now. I crouched down and looked her in the eyes.

"You will be okay, I promised didn't I? We will always be together."

"_Twelve for just the mother going once… going twice!..."_

_NO!_

"MOMMY!" She was crying now.

"Shh, shh." I held her close to me.

"_SOLD!"_

"NOOOOO!"

The guards grabbed at me and started to grad me away, leaving Alice in the arena.

"ALICE!"

I started to fight them now, I was _not _leaving her behind. I elbowed one of the groin and punched the other in the nose. I wrapped Alice in my arms and she wrapped her arms around me. Someone started their Taser and zapped me. I screamed but still held on. I refused to let go.

"M-M-Mommy!"

"I love you, I love you so much, please be strong, please forgive me, I'm so sorry. I love you so much." Tears started to leave my eyes as I was Tased again. I started to lose consciousness as they started to zap me more. I finally slumped to the side, losing the fight. Alice screamed at the guards and kicked at them, but they ignored her as they picked up my shoulders and dragged me off.

_I'm sorry Alice._


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's Chapter 2!**

I awoke to someone stroking my cheek. I squeezed my eyes and then opened them. Where was I? What happened?

"You are alive then. I thought they killed you in the arena. That would have been unfortunate, especially when I had bid so much for you." A man with black hair and green eyes like mine stared down at me. He wore a fancy suit with a blue tie and handkerchief.

"Alice."

"The child was sold back to your old Mistress. She decided to get sentimental the last minute."

She was back at our old house. She was with Molly.

"Why did you separate us?" I let the question slip, but I didn't care, I needed to know.

He pinched my side, causing me to make a snorting sound because he ended up tickling me. "Ticklish I see. I like that in human Entertainers."

"Please." I closed my eyes, not wanting to see what he'd do next.

He sat for a moment. "I didn't realize how important she was to you. But that's not the point, a child could not survive in this house."

He got up, "Be ready in fifteen minutes. I will personally show you around the house."

After he left, I silently laid there, remembering Alice. How small she was in my arms when I first had her, her smooth hair, her precious little smile. She was my Alice, and I let her slip through my fingers. I started to put on the white dress that my new owner laid out for me, all the while, crying without making a sound.

I exited the room and found a tiny woman with crazy red curls standing next to the door. "C'mon lass, Master wants to see ya." Her think Irish accent stuck out like a sore thumb.

I nodded and followed behind her. She glided in front and led me to big cherry wood doors. She knocked on the door before opening it and saying, "She's ready to see ya, Master."

"Thank you, Celine."

She closed the door behind me and left us alone. We were in what appeared to be his office. Bookshelves covered every wall, think texts were well taken care of and had gorgeous spines. A big dark cherry wood table sat in the middle of the room with a huge black plush leather chair behind it. Two computer screens laid on the table, files sat at the corner. A name plate sat on the edge of the front saying, **Chancellor Axel**. His name was often thrown around in my old host house, he was second charge of the Council.

He got up and inspected me with his eyes, then started to circle me like a wolf with his prey. "You will call me Axle. I don't want you to call me anything else but that, the only exception is when I have parties, then you must call me Master. But other than that, only Axle."

"Yes, Axle." A cold sweat broke out. When a vampire asked their human to call them their real name, they usually expect an intimate relationship. I had only had intercourse with one other person, and I had been horrified the entire time, especially because the father of Alice was a twenty year old. Some vampires can have their humans artificially inseminated, but it can get tricky because the doctors will often sabotage the human so they cannot be fertile, so that way the higher officials can't make more money off their humans.

Many vampires are starting to rebel against the United World Council because they don't like how humans are either being treated horrible, or too comfortably. Rumors were spreading that civil war was about ready to break out.

"Good, I'm glad we understand. Now, I will show you to your room."

I wondered what room I was in if it wasn't mine in the first place.

I followed him down the hall, looking at painting of beautiful women and men. One stopped me in my tracks at her beauty. She had long flowing blonde hair going over one shoulder, her eyes pointed to the floor, as though she was shy about being painted in such an intimate position, all the while a blanket covered most of her body, you could see part of her breast and her shoulder. Her hip poked out slightly and a long, skinny, ten leg draped itself over the couch she sat in.

"My Sara. She was so beautiful. I miss her everyday." He sighed and started down the hall. I quickly followed him to a huge door with the same wood as his office doors. We walked in and I gasped at its enormous size. The walls were a beige color with beautiful painting framed and hung on the wall along with small candles. I walked over to the bed and lightly brushed the smooth quit with my hands. It was a deep red with gold patterns embroidered on top and along the sides. The pillows matched but had gold tassels on the ends.

"This is yours, the whole room. Your work will be simple since you are an Entertainer. I will have you serve me drinks when I request it. You will appear before me when I request it. I may ask you to work in the kitchen and or dining room, but only if needed."

I nodded.

"You are also free to speak whenever you wish. I know some houses wish for you to speak when wanted, but you are free to speak whenever you wish."

"Thank you, Si- Axle."

"I will leave you to yourself. Feel free to roam the grounds, but I will expect you for dinner. Even if you are my human, I like my Entertainers to feel comfortable."

"Yes, Axle."

He left my room without another word, closing the door as he went. I decided to inspect my room more and started on the bathroom. It had a shower with glass doors, and a separate bath with what looked like jets on the sides.

My back started to ache a little and I took note that I hadn't taken any medicine since I last saw Alice. Just thinking of her made me want to break down and give up. Maybe I could cut a deal with Axle? I could tell him I would feel more comfortable with my child? I would do anything for him as long as I had my Alice again. But yet again, he did state that a child would not survive in his house. But it didn't matter, I would watch her constantly, and make sure she would always be safe.

I didn't even notice my tears until a heard a knock at the door. I opened it slowly and noticed a man at the door, a few years older than me. He had light blonde hair that went down to his ears and dark brown eyes and he carried a tray with a cup and a tea pot that was steaming out the end. "Master Axle requested that I serve you tea. He commented that your nerves seemed to be fried."

"Thank you." I opened the door more and let him in. He placed the tea on the dresser and asked if I needed anything else.

"Yes, is there a garden anywhere?"

"Certainly, it is right outside. Do you wish for me to take you and your tea to the patio area?"

"Yes, please."

He picked the tray back up and led me out a door with frosted windows. The garden wasn't too far away from the mansion and had a seating area. The man asked if I needed anything else, to which I said no. But right as I was leaving, I asked for his name.

"Jackson, ma'am."

"Marie. Please, call me Marie."

"Very well then." A small smile crept up to his face and he went inside.

I looked at the tea before I decided to wait a little while until I drank it. I started to walk around the garden and stared in awe at all the beautiful plants and bushes, but one plant stopped me stone cold. Calla lilies. My old Mistress used to own them and they were Alice's absolute favorite. I let out a sob and collapsed right in front of the plant. Just one little flower brought me to my knees in misery.

"Alice…" I sobbed. The pain of losing my child was torturous. It felt as though they tore part of my soul away from me.

I remembered the day Alice discovered Calla lilies. Mistress had heard of their plain beauty and decided to try and grow them among her other delicate flowers.

"Mommy, isn't this pretty?"

Mistress had asked us to work in the garden that day because she had just lost her human to an illness that she had had for three weeks. She was a good woman and garden hand and it was sad to see her body leave for incineration.

"Yes, Alice. But don't pull it because Mistress really likes those. That and if you pull them, they won't live that long. They need to have roots in the dirt so they can get nourishments," I explained.

"Okay, Mommy. I wasn't going to pull any though. I don't want the flower to leave its family."

She was four then. She was so precious and she still had some baby fat. Her legs were still chubby and she kind of wobbled when she walked.

"Are you alright, miss?"

I turned to see a small boy, about twelve years of age, wearing white button up shirt and pants with matching shoes. His brown eyes sparkled slightly and his pale skin held no imperfections. His black hair was cut short and was spiked with gell.

"Yes. Sorry, I was thinking of something that was painful."

He was shocked at my apology. "O-o-okay."

"What's your name?"

"K-k-kyle, Miss."

"Are you okay, Kyle?"

"I was b-born with a stutt-t-ter, Miss."

"You may call me by Marie, Kyle. Miss is too formal."

"Are you s-s-sure?"

"Absolutely!" I wiped the tears that drenched my cheeks and neck and stood. His cheeks turned pink and it highlighted his freckles.

"KYLE!"

I jumped at the voice and saw a man storm towards us. His eyes showed anger and he had his fists clench. Kyle seemed to back up slightly and the man grabbed him by his arms.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

"I-I-I s-s-saw her c-c-rying and t-thought-"

"SHUT UP!" He slapped his across the mouth and Kyle fell, bleeding from the lip. The mans' eyes flashed at the blood and he grabbed the boy again.

"Please stop, Sir," Kyle whimpered.

"STOP?! How dare you!"

I fell to his feet on hands and knees and begged, "Please, Sir. He was checking on me, he didn't know any better. I apologize for distracting him."

Kyle was put down and I kept my eyes pointed at the ground.

The man put his hand under my chin and tilted my head up. That's when I got a good look at him. He had dark toned skin and eyes. His hair was in dreadlocks and fell nearly to his waist. "Tell me child, what is your name and occupation?"

"Marie, I am an Entertainer, Sir."

He smirked. "An Entertainer, huh? Not much to entertain with. Why not show me what you do?"

"Do, Sir?"

"Entertain me, Marie."


	3. Chapter 3

"Please, Sir. I just started at this house today. I don't-"

"Do you not know who I am, Marie?" He didn't sound imposing, but like we were old friends catching up.

"I am afraid not, Sir."

"Allow me to introduce myself then. I am Avon, First Chancellor of the United Worlds Council. If you were to deny me, I would make sure that it would be the last time you would."

I trembled. Mistress always told me that Chancellor Avon was a wicked man who was not too be crossed with and that he goes through Entertainers like a woman changes outfits.

"Now that I have made sure you knew me, please, entertain me, Entertainer."

"What would you like me to do, Sir?"

He crossed his arms and looked at me, the smirk never leaving his face, then over my shoulder. "Kyle, leave us."

Kyle looked back at me with scared eyes as he scampered off. I looked back at Chancellor Avon and feared for the worse.

"Strip, Marie. Slowly."

"Ple-"One look from him was enough to silence me. I started to shrug off the shoulders of my dress when he came over and placed his hands one my bare shoulders. "Such soft skin." I shuddered slightly when he placed his lips on the soft part of my neck. I closed my eyes as he moved the dress down lower and he elongated his canines and applied pressure to the skin.

"AVON! She does not belong to you!" _Axel._

"My apologies." He put on his most wicked smile and touched my shoulder once more before turning towards Axel. Taking advantage of him looking away, I placed my dress back on my shoulders and held my stomach, trying not to throw up.

"I would appreciate it if you left Marie alone. She is for myself only." He extended his hand out to me and I went towards it to his side.

Avon lifted an eyebrow. "It's been awhile since that has happened. I thought Sara was a onetime deal."

"You thought wrong. We are done here and I ask you to leave." He didn't sound like he was asking, more like instructing.

"Don't forget who I am Axel. Or what I am capable of," he glanced back to me. "Goodbye, Marie." He glided away from us and back into the mansion.

Avon let out a breath and looked at me. "He didn't hurt you did he?"

I shook my head. I couldn't trust y voice at the moment. I didn't know whether it would crack, or release tears. "Good. I apologize for any discomfort. Avon likes to flaunt his dominance. He knows better now, though, that he will be punished for hurting one of my humans."

I was surprised by the term, "his humans", most vampires would call us slaves. Human is a much nicer word.

"You may return to your room, Marie." And on that note, I left the tea behind and went to my dorm.

I did not realize I fell asleep in the bathtub when I heard banging on my door. I scampered out of the bathroom and placed on my robe. I answered the door and hid behind it slightly. Celine was on the other side, her cheeks pink and her hair was a little frazzled. "There ya are! I thought I was going to have to get one of the men to help me out you little shat!"

I was surprised by her tone and bowed my head. "Sorry."

"Ah, it s'alright, lass. Just worried ya killed yerself already."

My eyes enlarged, but before I could comment, Celine started again. "Ya better dress quickly, lass! Master is waiting for you at the dinner table."

"I will be out in just a moment." I closed the door and opened the wardrobe. I began to paw though the many dresses and put together outfits. I quickly found a purple dress and decided to wear it, as a remembrance of my Alice. I slipped on some black flats and ran back to the door. I had left my hair up in a bun when I was in the tub so it wasn't wet. I pulled the bun out while leaving my room.

"That's a nice color on ya, lass." Celine quipped and then began to lead me to what I presumed to be the dining room.

I kept my head down when we entered the grand hall. Celine stayed by the wall but motioned with her head that I keep going.

Axel was already seated and had food laid out right in front of him. I sat down on the other side of the 10 foot long table facing him. Jackson appeared and placed out a silver tray before me. He lifted the lid and steam rose and revealed a lovely roast with mashed potatoes.

"Thank you, Jackson."

"You're welcome, ma'am." I lifted an eyebrow at the ma'am.

I started to eat once Jackson went back to what I assumed to be the kitchen. The meal was cooked beautifully.

"Have my servants been treating you well, Marie?"

"Yes, Axel."

"You don't need to be as formal as you were with your last Mistress."

"I am sorry, Axel. I was with my old Mistress for my whole life. I am used to being respectful towards my superiors."

"I wish for you to think of us as equals, Marie."

"Equals? But you own me?"

"I hope to change all of that soon."

"I beg your pardon?"

And as abruptly as he had said the previous statement, he quickly stated, "I believe I am finished Celine. When Marie is finished please take her back to her room."

I lay in my new bed staring up at the ceiling. I ponded Axel's words at dinner tonight. Equals? Humans were never considered equal. Not since before the Takeover.

Humans weren't allowed to talk about it, but that didn't mean we couldn't discuss it at bed. I remember when I was pregnant with Alice, I had heard the story of the Takeover for the first time. It first started off as disappearances and killings. Then it slowly escaladed and suddenly the leader of the old human world was killed. Then his followers. The vampires took over slowly through North America and the rest of the world. Once they claimed the world, the humans were divided among the vampires by who would get what. Many fights broke out though, so they decided that if you could place claim over the human, it was yours.

Placing claim isn't that hard, but you need to bit the human on the arm and then place your blood in their mouth. One would think that that's how you would become a vampire, but in reality, you needed to be fed blood and exchange yours with your chosen Sire. Once that was done, you needed to be killed. Once you were dead, you needed to be fed blood by the Sire and a human.

It was a morbid process.

After the Takeover, it was rumored that humans were smuggled by vampires who didn't believe in what the others believed in. They were supposedly hiding and waiting.

It's impossible though, the Council monitors every human. We were placed with a chip at birth with blood and dental samples when our adult teeth grew in.

My thoughts went away from that and thought about my Alice. What was she doing now? I'm sure she's curled up with Molly and trying hard not to cry. She was my brave little girl. She hates crying in front of other people, she always waits to be alone before she lets her tears loose.

I couldn't take it anymore.

I got up and went to the closet, grabbing anything that would help me on my soon to be journey. I wanted Alice. I would get her back.

I took a jacket and one of the butter knives that had been left with my afternoon tea. I opened the window and saw how far of a drop it would be. I was on the third floor and it had to be a 30 foot drop. I tied the sheets together and dropped it out the window and started to climb, I was short 15 feet though and when I decided to let go, I instantly regretted it. Sharp pain snapped into my ankle and shot up through my calve. I help in my scream and got up, breathing through the pain.

I went off into the night and followed the road, not staying on it, but hiding in the woods. I traveled until the sun started to rise.

I knew vampires could travel during the day. The sun didn't hurt them, but they grew tired quickly. I would only rest for a few hours then travel quickly.

I would get Alice back. I didn't know how I would, or where we would go, but I would have her safe in my arms again.

"Get up."

I blinked a few times before actually looking with my eyes. I saw a pair of boots and my breath left me. I looked up and saw the last person I wanted to be around.

_Axel._

"Get up. We are leaving."

I stood up and stood my ground. "No."

"Excuse me?"

"I said no."

As quickly as I said that, I was thrown up against a tree. His hand wrapped around my throat, not enough to keep me from breathing, but enough to get my attention. "I am your Master now. You will obey, and you will be submissive."

"I may be human, but I still live and breathe much to your kinds' disbelief." I was angry. I was tired. Vampires have ruined my life.

"You should have thought about all that before you tried to leave, now I have no choice but to punish you."

"You should have thought about this before you tried to separate me from my daughter."

He glared at me and I glared back. We had a stare off for a few brief moments before Axel yelled for Jackson. "If she wishes to be treated like a runaway, she'll be treated like one. Put her in the coffin."

"Master, I don't think that's wise-" He started.

"DID I ASK YOU WHAT WAS WISE? DO AS I SAY OR YOU'LL JOIN HER!"

Jackson stayed quiet as he grabbed me and took me over to the back of a big, black vehicle with tinted windows. He opened the back door of the trunk and revealed a coffin. He placed in a combination on the wood and opened the lid. "Marie, I have to place you in."

"Jackson," I pulled out the knife and showed it to him. I then made a motion to Axel who had placed himself in the front passenger seat.

He shook his head. "I'm sorry Marie. You have to go in."

I realized he wasn't going to help me. "Please Jackson, don't do this. Please don't." I started to shake slightly.

"You'll be okay, you'll be able to breathe, but don't breathe to hard, you'll have to even out your breaths," as he was saying all this he was placing his hands underneath me and lifting me up and into the bed for the dead. I wrapped my arms around his neck and when he gently took my hands off, I grabbed his arms and hands all the while quietly whispering please over and over.

"It'll be over soon, Marie, I promise." He said quietly and then closed the lid, leaving me in darkness.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! Sorry this update is taking forever! I have been really busy lately with some wildlife and archery events and my mom also uses my laptop a lot with some of the archery things that we do. But hey! I'm finally updating bros! Finally! But also I'm having a tough time writing this part because someone I knew has died recently so it's just kinda hard, but I know how this story is going to happen and this has to happen.**

**Also my boyfriend and I broke up so everything's just been crazy! Love it! NOT!**

I tried to keep my breath calm as the car took its time going back to Axels' mansion. The coffin seemed to slowly close in and I kept my eyes shut as much as possible. Axel was going to be so pissed when we got back, I could only imagine what kind of punishment I was going to receive for my running away.

If I got a punishment. I may just be killed. It would not be the first time a human was killed for running away from their owner. When I was with Mistress, she had a male Entertainer for the longest time. She started to fall for him and even considered changing him. He showed the same feelings for her, but they were all a sham. Later the evening that they had promised that he was going to change for Mistress, he tried to run with another male entertainer.

Mistress was horrified and hurt by the betrayal, and for the pain he caused, he died minutes after being discovered by her hand, the Entertainers lover following soon after.

Mistress was always a little different after that.

I may die today, and my Alice would never know. I started to think of how close I had gotten to being close to her, and how I had failed so quickly. I only prayed that Axel would respect my child and tell her gently.

I hadn't realized I actually fell asleep until the coffin lid opened and the bright sun blinded me. I lifted a hand to cover my eyes and squinted as I saw the outline of Jackson lift me up and set me down on the driveway. Axel stood in front of me with his arms crossed. He said nothing as Jackson moved to his side and kept his eyes down.

"Take her to her room, Jackson. I must think of what to do first. I'll try to cool down but I am too _furious _at the moment to even try to _think_ of a logical punishment." Jackson said nothing but took me by my arm and lead me into the front door way.

I had never really looked around the mansion, I was too absorbed in trying to not irritate Axel on the first day, not like that worked anyway due to me trying to escape later. So when we entered the foyer, I was stunned at the beauty of the dark red painted walls and knick knacks that were set up precisely and did not have a speck of dust on any. And then I noticed something.

"Jackson," I started as we continued up one of the two ascending staircases. "What was that woman, Sara, to Axel?"

Jackson kept his face forward, but answered, "She was Axel's Entertainer. Axel had planned to turn her, but she ran away."

"What happened?"

"No one knows. She was the sweetest woman I had ever known. I was only eight when I came here, terrified, my mother had been torn away from me. I hid and cried in one of the linen closets my first night here. She heard me and found me out. I still remember it perfectly, she smiled so softly and said, 'Now this is no place to sleep, why aren't you in bed?' I told her I didn't remember, so she told me to spend the night with her and that we would find it in the morning." He smiled then, showing off some of his teeth. "Only seventeen and knew how to act like a mother."

"Did she have children?"

"No, she was only an Entertainer, not a Breeder like you were at first."

"I wonder where she went, if she's still alive."

"Right now I think you need to focus on whether _you_ will still be alive or not by the end of the day. You pissed off a very dangerous man. He must really be trying to narrow down on spending Entertainers because I have never seen him show that much restraint before."

"Why? What makes me so special? Why did he feel the need to separate me from my daughter? Why am I so special that he puts me through this constant pain?" Tears sprung forward and I felt so small.

I hadn't realized we stopped in front of my door until Jackson wrapped his arms around me and began to rub my arms and back. "I just want my Alice. I want my baby." I sobbed as I embraced him back letting the tears flow and stain our clothing.

He pulled back. "You have to go in there and prepare for Axel. Please. If you don't and we are found out we'll both be punished gravely. Please. I'll do what I can to try and lessen the punishment, he listens to me about certain things. Just go in there and let me try to help."

"Okay. But please be safe."

"I promise." He hugged me once, breathing heavy, causing hot air to blow on my head, and was gone.

I waited patiently on the perch of my window. I tried opening it, but of course, it was nailed shut. I considered breaking the little mirror in the corner of the room and slitting my wrists, but I knew that Axel would more than likely try and bring me back. What better way to torture me than to make me live forever?

It was almost the middle of the night when he made an appearance. I had changed into my nightgown without having dinner or bathing. I felt myself start to break out into a sweat when he slowly made his way toward me and sat on the bed.

"What you did was stupid. I am very disappointed. I had hoped for better potential."

I dropped my head and lowered my eyes. "I'm sorry, Master."

"Why do you call me that? I made it clear that I want you to address me by my name."

I waited a moment before answering. "When my old owner had me, she would get mad often. Even though she, too, wanted us to call her by her first name in private, but if one slipped out of line, we all had to refer to her as Mistress."

"Did she beat you often?"

"Not to me, no. She picked favorites, I was lucky. She did supposedly kill a woman on accident when she got rough with her beatings." I looked down at my hands.

"Were you close to this woman?"

"For a while there yes, until she tried to get me in trouble."

"What kind of trouble?"

I kept quiet, debating on whether I felt comfortable telling him or not. "Or you don't have to say anything I suppose."

"She told my Mistress I was sleeping around with her former lover."

He looked stunned. "You were the one she asked me about?"

I nodded. "I didn't mean for the two of you to fall apart."

"You did nothing wrong. After all, we didn't meet until just the other day. No, your old owner and I were going to fall out soon enough anyway."

"I am still sorry for what happened."

He sat there silently for a moment. "You promise not to run again?"

I looked up at him, shocked. "Y-yes."

"Your punishment is done, I shall have food brought up to you at once." He made his way for the door and before it closed, he scolded, "If I catch you lying to me again. I'll kill you."


End file.
